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View Full Version : WP: Pocket PC stinks.


TawnerX
07-13-2003, 07:41 AM
(the front page WP link reads: Don't Pick Pocket PC 2003)

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A45993-2003Jul11.html?nav=hptoc_tn

Don't Pick This Pocket
By Rob Pegoraro
Sunday, July 13, 2003; Page F07

"But if you upgrade, will you be able to spot the difference? PPC 2003's core calendar, address book, inbox, tasks and notes programs show only minor changes of the sort you'd expect from a free maintenance-upgrade download.

Also largely unchanged: an exasperatingly inconsistent and inefficient interface.

But ActiveSync was a pillar of strength compared with the iPaq's wireless networking. The internal Bluetooth receiver drained the battery, reducing battery life from five days to as little as 16 hours, and failed to work with many other Bluetooth device."


----------------
(This one is precious. Does he even realize that he needs to instal driver? And D-link doesn't have a driver for 2k3 yet. Their web site doesn't list 2k3 driver. Why would Microsoft know anything about D-link driver?)

"A D-Link WiFi wireless-networking card plugged into the iPaq's Compact Flash slot was worse than useless. It just sat in its slot, draining electricity without ever connecting to any of the WiFi access points in range, leaving me unable to test the promised improvements in the Pocket PC version of Internet Explorer. (Microsoft said this card should have worked, and it did not know why it didn't.) "


(Tap counting war!... is it time to flood his mailbox with Tap counting example? lol)
Consider how you view contacts or task items. You can open either by pressing a button, a real help in one-handed use -- but closing them requires tapping a small "OK" icon on the screen with the stylus. Editing a contact or appointment demands that you tap a still smaller "Edit" command. Adjusting brightness is a six-tap procedure (at least HP's iTap utility reduces this to one press of a button and two taps of the screen), and getting a useful readout of battery life takes four steps (three in iTap).

(He just want an organizer... waaaa.... !)
"In the present, however, the core job of a handheld organizer is managing your life at least as well as paper, and that's where Microsoft needs to turn its attention. "

------------------------
I got the feeling he got the job at WashingtonPost when They bought that technews webbies. He couldn't possibly get hired by WP.

Coming soon: I can't wait how he will praise T|T2 and how efficient Decuma Handwriting in NX is.

This guy is a real gem. I wonder how long till Microsoft crew start doing a work on him. He is consistently say PPC stinks over some of the weirdest reason.

TawnerX
07-13-2003, 08:20 AM
Monday, 2 p.m. ET
Fast Forward Live
Personal technology columnist Rob Pegoraro will be online Monday afternoon to take questions about his review of Microsoft's Pocket PC 2003 operation system and other topics. Submit Questions Now.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/technology/personaltech/


Submit your questions and comments: Join Rob for a live online discussion on Monday, July 14 at 2 p.m ET.
http://discuss.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/zforum/03/r_technews_pegoraro071403.htm

-----------------------------------------------
Fast Forward editor Rob Pegoraro answers your questions about the dizzy world of consumer electronics and personal technology, from palm devices and computers to telephones and Internet access every other Friday at 1 p.m. ET.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/liveonline/biztech.htm

TawnerX
07-13-2003, 08:22 AM
I am really tempted to submit stupid questions. But I'll stay away.

Jerry Raia
07-14-2003, 09:26 AM
I love the critics, lets see the software they write.

swimmer
07-14-2003, 07:14 PM
Well, its live and he's already started out with this:

Boston: That was a tough review of Pocket PC 2003. If you are a sys admin for a Win2k LAN using Outlook, would you recommended a ipaq 5550 or a Tungsten C?

Rob Pegoraro: From what I'd heard from one or two Pocket PC manufacturers, I had higher hopes for Pocket PC 2003. But instead, it's a stereotypical Microsoft upgrade--more features, but little attention paid to improving the usability of the existing feature set.

To answer the question, I'd note that the Tungsten C comes with an Outlook conduit (Chapura's PocketMirror, which I've found works pretty well) and Microsoft Office synchronization software (DataViz's Documents To Go). I can't claim expertise on running Exchange servers or Windows networks, but I do know that the Tungsten C is a pretty good handheld in general.

aroma
07-14-2003, 07:33 PM
I spy a Palm bigot giving a PPC review... anyone else?

:twisted:

TawnerX
07-14-2003, 07:34 PM
There you have it ladies and gents. Chapura conduit is better outlook than Poutlook.

:lol:

Somebody better start ask him what he thinks about T|C and the whole MAC WiFi ID debacle. Did he recommend people NOT to buy it since it is a flawed device?

ANd also somebody found a CF driver for his beloved D-link WiFi CF.
http://discussion.brighthand.com/showthread.php?
s=dc1782922ca461c157ed91b0048402cf&threadid=83620

"Closer investigation reveals that, while none of Dlink's drivers seem to work properly, Netgear's MA401 driver seems to do the trick just peachy."


His basic argument is always the same:
-PPC stinks cause you have to add applications.
-PPC stinks cause it doesn't have grafitti
-PPC stinks cause it doens't have Palm UI.

Then he will go on and talk long and deep about the virtue of adding applications to Palm, or how sometimes Palm UI quirks is just that, a quirk.

----------------
Direct link to the chat thread.

http://discuss.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/zforum/03/r_technews_pegoraro071403.htm

TawnerX
07-14-2003, 08:05 PM
His previous opinion on AximX5.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A57852-2002Dec15.html

The chat transcript.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/liveonline/02/regular/r_technews_pegoraro120902.htm

BTW, Sony for some reason didn't give him TG50 for review. Sony didn't like him. lol

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A40905-2003Apr6.html

swimmer
07-14-2003, 08:34 PM
Portland, Ore.: How many PDA's have you owned and which ones?

Rob Pegoraro: Two so far -- a Palm III (kept it for three or so years, had it replaced once under warranty and then it up and died last year) and a Sony Clie N610C (bought about 60 days before Sony discontinued the model)

Granted that was in december, but he was reviewing the dell then. Should he be reviewing pocket pc's at all?

TawnerX
07-15-2003, 12:36 AM
If microsoft put him on balck list,
He'll have nothing to review but Apple and Palm.

hhmmm... I feel sorry for Apple and Palm already. lol

spursdude
07-15-2003, 01:40 AM
Consider how you view contacts or task items. You can open either by pressing a button, a real help in one-handed use -- but closing them requires tapping a small "OK" icon on the screen with the stylus.
You actually don't have to tap "OK" - I found out somehow that while you're viewing a contact (or an appointment or task for that matter) you can just push the action button again to go back to your main list.

Prevost
07-15-2003, 05:05 AM
(He just want an organizer... waaaa.... !)
"In the present, however, the core job of a handheld organizer is managing your life at least as well as paper, and that's where Microsoft needs to turn its attention. "


Now is my turn to give you the reason.

I use my Palm for PC work on the move, not as an organizer. If this guy considers a Pocket PC (or in my case a Palm) a "handheld organizer", he is a...well, I don't know how do you say "estupido" in English - sorry!

Both Palms and Pocket PC's are today way beyond merely organizers. And being tied to paper for too many years, I am sure 20 taps are better than a single crossing out.

TawnerX
07-15-2003, 05:26 AM
This guy is actually using ClieN610... eeehrrr...
He is dissing h2210 over this POS?

-This model doesn't even come with DTG, and he keeps singing about how pOffice is such a lousy bundled apps compare to DTG?
http://www.dataviz.com/products/documentstogo/dxtg_hhbundle.html

the cost of getting DTG would have similar to Texmaker + spreadCE for h2215.

-No audio capability
-Memory stick
-old reflective screen
-no networking capability whatsoever. (an yet he is complaining about non functioning D-link WiFi card?)
-8MB?


I got the feeling this guy just dabbling around with blank PPC, and he thinks he has the goods to deliver a review.

-------------------


Bias is an accusation that I take very seriously. I don't want to be known as "the Palm guy" or "the Apple guy." But in this case, I don't know how I could write the column differently -- the Pocket PC operating system has clear and objective usability deficits compared to Palm (which itself has clear and objective usability deficits compared to paper, the ultimate standard in this category). You can count taps, you can track pen movements, you can use a stopwatch; either way, you'll find that most personal-info-management tasks take longer and require more steps on a Pocket PC than on a Palm.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A57852-2002Dec15.html

(Well I guess he still haven't figure out about this thing called installing apps in PPC since last december when he reviewed X5)

Red Dawn
07-15-2003, 09:30 AM
Hi guys,

i know this is heretical, but coming from the Palm OS, i do agree that the Palm OS UI is really much simpler and more intuitive.

i say that as a 2 week old user of a brand new HP IPAQ 2210. i still get quite frustrated with the interface. Oh well, i guess i will get used to it... :)

And i still haven't found a simple yet feature rich organiser application like DateBk 5 for the Palm. :evil:

Yes i know there's Agenda and there's Pocket Informant, both of which i have downloaded and evaluated but none of these really approach the simplicity of DateBk 5, and they don't do anything new that DateBk 5 doesn't. u gotta use that to know wat i mean - the UI of Pocket Informant is so horribly cryptic compared to the Palm based alternatives.

ok....rant mode off. I still love my IPAQ for wat it does that Palm cannot :)

aroma
07-15-2003, 12:42 PM
i know this is heretical, but coming from the Palm OS, i do agree that the Palm OS UI is really much simpler and more intuitive.

i say that as a 2 week old user of a brand new HP IPAQ 2210. i still get quite frustrated with the interface.

And here lies the real question. If you were to take a brand new user, which would she/he like better... the PPC UI or Palm UI. I'm sure anyone raised on Palm would have a frustrating time using PPC, just like anyone raised on PPC would have a rough time with Palm. When you are use to one thing, anything else is going to be different and frustrating for a while.

TawnerX
07-15-2003, 02:14 PM
Hi guys,

And i still haven't found a simple yet feature rich organiser application like DateBk 5 for the Palm. :evil:
)

The built in PIM maybe?

Prevost
07-16-2003, 03:01 AM
i know this is heretical, but coming from the Palm OS, i do agree that the Palm OS UI is really much simpler and more intuitive.

i say that as a 2 week old user of a brand new HP IPAQ 2210. i still get quite frustrated with the interface.

And here lies the real question. If you were to take a brand new user, which would she/he like better... the PPC UI or Palm UI. I'm sure anyone raised on Palm would have a frustrating time using PPC, just like anyone raised on PPC would have a rough time with Palm. When you are use to one thing, anything else is going to be different and frustrating for a while.
Well, I started on PDAs right on Palm (the only one I have had) that I bought second-hand. No users manual came with it, however, I was able to figure out right away how to use it.

I think also that PocketPC shouldnt be too difficult, since I suppose its UI is quite similar of our Windows in the desktop...something with no big changes at least from 1991 (Windows 3.0) But obviously will take more steps for some tasks.

Prevost
07-16-2003, 03:06 AM
the cost of getting DTG would have similar to Texmaker + spreadCE for h2215.
spreadCE = spreadsheet for ppc compatible with excel but better than pocket excel? Just like Textmaker is?

If it is so, another obstacle removed in my road into ppc :mrgreen: !

TawnerX
07-16-2003, 03:43 AM
spreadCE = spreadsheet for ppc compatible with excel but better than pocket excel? Just like Textmaker is?

If it is so, another obstacle removed in my road into ppc :mrgreen: !

SpreadCE has been around for a while. It supports opening native excel file, tho' you won't be able to change chart. It supports far more equations, not to mention macros than DTG. $20 if you like it, it has unlmited trial.
http://www.byedesign.freeserve.co.uk/

Textmaker developer is also promising a version of their spreadsheet, but haven't heard anything. Could be a while yet.

What application are you still looking in PPC beside office apps?

Prevost
07-16-2003, 04:01 AM
Alright, I need:

CAD (there are a few but I think the best are PocketCAD and PowerCAD)
Something for structural design (!!!)
Word processor (textmaker is the one I think)
Spreadsheets (I believe I could live with pocket excel)
Calculator ( I dont know if PPC's bring a calculator as Palm's do)
Something like Palm's integrated memopad (guess PPC's have something)

If you have any further recommendations concerning this applications, they are welcome!

I would like to know if...
Hard buttons are remappeable as in palm, and if you can launch ANY program with them (like if they were shortcuts in the desktop) or if there is any quick way to launch apps, at least as direct as with palms

(Pardon me if Im insisting too much on Palm, but is has become like my benchmark for usability :oops: )

spursdude
07-16-2003, 04:34 AM
Calculator ( I dont know if PPC's bring a calculator as Palm's do)
Pocket PCs come with a very basic calculator. You can download better ones though, although I don't know which ones are good specifically.

Hard buttons are remappeable as in palm, and if you can launch ANY program with them (like if they were shortcuts in the desktop) or if there is any quick way to launch apps, at least as direct as with palms
You can remap hardware buttons to anything you like. If the program is listed in your Programs folder (and you can put anything in that folder), then you can map a button to it. There are also some programs like tdLaunch or Launcher that allow you to put small shortcuts to programs right onto the Today screen.

Prevost
07-16-2003, 05:00 AM
Very good. I only need a basic calculator.

darrylb
07-16-2003, 05:06 AM
Bias is an accusation that I take very seriously. I don't want to be known as "the Palm guy" or "the Apple guy." But in this case, I don't know how I could write the column differently -- the Pocket PC operating system has clear and objective usability deficits compared to Palm (which itself has clear and objective usability deficits compared to paper, the ultimate standard in this category). You can count taps, you can track pen movements, you can use a stopwatch; either way, you'll find that most personal-info-management tasks take longer and require more steps on a Pocket PC than on a Palm.


If this guy is comparing devices based on basic PIM capabilities - fine. But realistically who bought a pocketPC because it does all the PIM functions? Like most other people, I bought a PocketPC because of all the other things I can do with it - that I cannot do with a Palm (or paper for that matter). How many bits of paper can record how much I excercise? Not too many I'm willing to bet, yet this is why we bought these devices.

How about this guy put the 'real' back into reality. His reviews surely wont do anything for a corporate that is looking for a mobility solution as he would struggle to find any corporate application other than PIMs

TawnerX
07-16-2003, 05:35 AM
Alright, I need:

CAD (there are a few but I think the best are PocketCAD and PowerCAD)
Something for structural design (!!!)
Word processor (textmaker is the one I think)
Spreadsheets (I believe I could live with pocket excel)
Calculator ( I dont know if PPC's bring a calculator as Palm's do)
Something like Palm's integrated memopad (guess PPC's have something)

I would like to know if...
Hard buttons are remappeable as in palm, and if you can launch ANY program with them (like if they were shortcuts in the desktop) or if there is any quick way to launch apps, at least as direct as with palms


freebie calculator, for payware, check the usual net software vendors, they are a dime a dozen, including engineering specific calculator.
http://www.mobigeeks.net/e/forum/showthread.php?s=&threadid=514

memopad? gah, there are more notepad/memopad applications than you can shake a stick at.

-PPC has built in hardware button remapper, you can also purchase things like VIto button ... etc.... Which you can assign buttons to do more than one thing.

Prevost
07-16-2003, 05:42 AM
-PPC has built in hardware button remapper, you can also purchase things like VIto button ... etc.... Which you can assign buttons to do more than one thing.
Hey, that DOES sound good!

Im starting to feel sorry for my palm... :oops:

Thinkingmandavid
07-17-2003, 02:52 AM
I used to have an IBM c3, which was like the palm 5, but it did a lot of resetting on its own, and it became so frustrating for me. This was in the first year. I liked playing games on it, all of my contacts, pocket mirror, but you had to load additional software to sync with word. IN my opinion that is crazy. I feel the most basic of pda's should come with the software to sync with word and excel apps. Why should I have to spend extra money?